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The first day of autumn has come and gone, and I haven’t posted since! I know I said there would not be another hiatus, but I was wrong.

I went home for a couple of weeks and hung out with Matthew in San Diego, Los Angeles, and on the central coast. It was nice to be back in my natural habitat.

Highway 1

I got back to Scotland two weeks ago. I had my last first day of school. I’ve killed myself finishing up my thesis research. I spent time outside. I started watching Breaking Bad.

Newest Television Problem

But now it’s October and I’m in Scotland, so it’s time to crack back down to work and my little blog. The leaves outside are changing, so don’t be surprised if you see some here too! I’m hoping for some new things this year (like consistency…), so if you like something that I’ve done, I’d love to hear from you!

This past week, I read the children’s novel The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett. It is a physical book I remember from childhood, but don’t remember actually reading. I think I have a hard back copy sitting on a shelf in my bedroom at home with a dark green, leafy pattern on the jacket.

Parts of Glasgow have, in a sense, become my own secret garden. Although they are far from secret, there is something that wakes up in me as I wander through green spaces with lovely flora and fauna. Now is the time in life to stop and smell the roses.

Clearly I ended up taking a month off, albeit completely unplanned. I’d like to promise that it will never happen again, but let’s be honest, I’m doing an MPhil and working and trying to entertain friends (and a wonderful dog for a couple of days) and actually take a breather and watch some quality films.

Not exactly blogging weather

It’s been lovely here (still! it’s like a summer miracle that Glasgow has been nicer than home in California!) so I’ve been spending a lot of time outside.

I’ve baked two batches of peanut butter brownies in a month as parting food. If you haven’t tried these yet, seriously, you must because they are perhaps the best baked good ever and I can take no credit for anything about them other than being able to exactly, faithfully replicate a recipe.

That and working like mad both on a thesis and at a job, blogging things have not exactly been on my mind. I promise, though, that I’ll be better AND that I’ll have rolled out a recipe for something amazing (think cookies) by the beginning of next week.

As you may have noted, I have taken a little hiatus from blogging the last few weeks. I have been so unexpectedly busy! In addition to a wonderful visit with a very special guest (my mom!), I’ve been running around with Matthew and enjoying the sun while trying to keep up with my thesis. Basically, I’ve been trying to enjoy the summer for a wee while because I don’t really get to have one this year…

Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle

While I was away from you, I was running around Scotland. In addition to hanging about a village near Glasgow, my mom and I ended up in the Highlands! I’ve been up before, but not nearly as far. Can I just tell you how stunning it is up there in the Spring? I couldn’t believe it. All of those things you hear are true. And get this: the whole time we were there, it was sunny. Simply amazing. Inverness and Loch Ness, you have not seen the last of this girl. There was also a trip to St. Andrews where we hung out with this girl. We also did some touristy things in Glasgow, which I thoroughly enjoyed, including the Glasgow Necropolis (go if you haven’t, it’s literally awesome), the Willow Tea Room (great if you love Mackintosh), the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, and the Hunterian Museum and Art Gallery.

I have eaten more in the last three weeks than I could possibly describe, so I’m not even going to try. I will say, however, that I’m getting concerned about what might happen with my jeans and that the running needs to commence this week… I would provide a recipe for you all, but I’ve been sticking to old favorites recently. I suspect that this week will bring something good though. I hope you’re enjoying the first week of June! (How did the first half of the year flash by so quickly!?)

Glasgow had a sudden heat snap today, though it seems as if it will be nothing more than a memory tomorrow. I’m planning on getting up early and going for a run- an attempt to get back into some semblance of shape for the summer. Nothing says “attractive” at the beach like eating too much all winter to stay warm.

French Cooking

Today was a “life is short, eat dessert first” kind of day. When Matthew and I got home from our respective universities, we went for a lovely walk down by the river, Snickers ice cream bars in hand. We intended to only be gone like 20 minutes, but we didn’t end up getting home until almost 8! By this time, I had to make dinner, although I thrown together a lovely fruit salad before we left. Fortunately for me, I had a meal plan for the evening: Cod, Coriander, Tomato, and Garlic Parcels. On this extended walk, we picked up a baguette, so it became a wonderfully French meal. The recipe I used is out of Daniel Galmiche’s wonderful cookbook French Brasserie Cookbook: The Heart of French Home Cooking. Not only was this dish pretty and delicious, it was also SUPER easy. I’m talking 10 minute prep with no anxiety easy. I’d dole out the recipe online, but since I didn’t change anything, it feels like I’d be trying to pass it off as my own. But if you’re ever feeling like cod, I’ll cook it for you! I highly suggest checking out his website and buying his book. (No, he’s not paying me. I wish!)

Generally, I have a pretty limited fish repertoire; I wish I had more! Does anyone out there have any good fish recipes?

The end of February and beginning of March have, thus far, been stunning here in Glasgow. The weather is warmer (in the mid to upper 40s F and around 8°C!!), snow drops have appeared, and daffodils are beginning to bud. Sunset today was at a whopping 6 pm. It’s not even Spring and I’ve just about fallen head over heels for Scotland again. We had a low point this winter, but this will be the first Spring I’ve ever really been thankful for and, boy, am I ready. Bring back those leaves on the trees and days a month of sunshine where I can comfortably take reading for my thesis and sit on a grassy hill!

Matthew and I also had a lovely weekend which included badminton, walks through fields, tree planting, and a small trip to Loch Lomond. It was so nice to do things out of our normal routine, especially things we both enjoy that are outdoors. It was a weekend that made me appreciate just how lucky I am to be alive and hang around such a great guy.

My life of late has been pretty much the same. I feel that since I am living in a foreign country I should be doing a lot more exciting fun things, but, let’s face it, this place is my life now. I can’t afford to run around the UK because I have to actually make a life for myself so I don’t go insane. As much as I love the adventure that my life has become, some semblance of normalcy is required.

This past week, though, has been a bit more exciting than normal because a friend of mine from St. Andrews came to visit. We did all sorts of things that I haven’t done in such a long time. It made me remember how much I like this city, even if Glasgow is a bit rough around the edges. Also, I had the best piece of cheesecake I’ve ever eaten. It’s been 3 days since the pecan cheesecake from Willow Tea Rooms entered my life and I still can’t stop talking about it. If ever you are in Glasgow looking for Mackintosh architecture, a fairly nice atmosphere, and great cheesecake, go there folks.

We were also lucky enough to have the most beautiful weather in months the past few days. It was brilliantly sunny, it wasn’t bitterly cold, and, because I had time blocked out for my friend, I got to enjoy it! Today is actually foggy (very odd), but it looks like sun as far as the weather app on my iphone can see! I doubt that will actually happen, but it’s a nice thing to imagine.

In addition to all of this fun, the literature review portion of my thesis is starting to take shape. I’m in the very early stages, of course, but it’s generally outlined and much of the first section is done. I’m so excited to have finally started writing. It makes the whole project a lot more tangible and has put me on a better path to actually get things done. I need to have lots more than I’ve finished done by Friday though, so hopefully I’ll have a successful working day today. If you have any suggestions of scholarly work I should check out, I’d be more than happy to know about it! Wish me luck on writing about all things psychologically related to autism!